Changes: When the World Was at War We Kept Dancing (song)

Latest revision as of 19:14, 16 August 2023

Lana Del Rey

Writer(s)

Lana Del Rey
Rick Nowels
Dean Reid

Producer(s)

Lana Del Rey
Rick Nowels
Kieron Menzies
Dean Reid

Recorded

January 2017

Released

July 21, 2017

Length

4:35
(See official versions)

From

Single(s)

"Love"
"Lust for Life"
"Summer Bummer"
"Groupie Love"

Promotional single(s)

"Coachella - Woodstock in My Mind"

*Lust for Life* track listing
"God Bless America - and All the Beautiful Women in It"	"Beautiful People Beautiful Problems"

"When the World Was at War We Kept Dancing" is a song by Lana Del Rey. It was co-written and produced with Rick Nowels, Dean Reid and Kieron Menzies. It is featured as the eleventh track on Del Rey's fifth studio album and fourth major-label studio album, Lust for Life.

Background and writing[]

During an interview featured in Flaunt magazine that was released on May 15, 2017, Del Rey stated that the song had political themes, similarly to "God Bless America - and All the Beautiful Women in It". However, she feared that it would not be well received by the public and was unsure whether to include it or not:

"Well, I have a song that's quite aware about the collective worry, about whether this is the end of an era. It's called "When the World Was at War We Kept Dancing." But I actually went back and forth about keeping it on the record, because I didn't want it there if it would make people feel worse instead of better. It's not apathetic. The tone of the production is very dark, and doesn't lead to a fucking happy feeling. And the question it poses: Is this the end of America, of an era? Are we running out of time with this person at the helm of a ship? Will it crash? In my mind, the lyrics were a reminder not to shut down or shut off, or just don't talk about things. It was more like stay vigilant and keep dancing. Stay awake."

In an interview for V magazine, Del Rey confirmed that the track would be included on the album.

Live performances[]

Del Rey performed the song live for the first time at her Lust for Life listening party and performance hosted by Spotify at No Vacancy in Los Angeles, California, on July 20, 2017. In 2018, the song was included as part of the setlist for the LA to the Moon Tour.

Cross-references[]

Pearls and curls are individually mentioned in "Fucked My Way Up to the Top" and "Marilyn Monroe"; while curls are mentioned only in "The Other Woman".
Del Rey remarks "Oh my God" in "Heroin", "Summertime Sadness", "The Blackest Day" and "Paradise".
Dancing is also mentioned in "California", "Dance Till We Die", "Lust for Life", "Prom Song (Gone Wrong)", "Smarty", "If You Lie Down With Me", and "The Grants", among several others.

Official versions[]

Album version — 4:35
Clean version — 4:35

Lyrics[]

Girls, don’t forget your pearls and all of your horses
As you make your way across the pond
Girls, don’t forget your curls and all of your choruses
Memorize them in a little song

Shake it up, throw your hands up and get loose
Cut a rug, lean into the fuckin' youth
Choreo, we just want the fuckin' truth
(Told by the fake news)

Is it the end of an era?
Is it the end of America?
Is it the end of an era?
Is it the end of America?

No, it’s only the beginning
If we hold on to hope
We’ll have a happy ending

When the world was at war before, we just kept dancing
When the world was at war before, we just kept dancing

Boys, don’t forget your toys and take all of your money
If you find you’re in a foreign land
Boys, don’t make too much noise and don’t try to be funny
Other people may not understand

Shake it up, throw your hands up and get loose
Cut a rug, lean into the fuckin' youth
Choreo, we just want the fuckin' truth
(Told by the fake news)

Is it the end of an era?
Is it the end of America?
Is it the end of an era?
Is it the end of America?

No, it’s only the beginning
If we hold on to hope
We’ll have a happy ending

When the world was at war before, we just kept dancing
When the world was at war before, we just kept dancing

And we'll do it again
(Oh, my God, dizzy from lovin' you)
We’ll do it again
(Oh, my God, dizzy from lovin' you)
We’ll do it again
(Dizzy from, dizzy from lovin' you)
We’ll do it again
(With the world at war)

Is it the end of an era?
Is it the end of America?
Is it the end of an era?
Is it the end of America?

When the world was at war before, we just kept dancing
When the world was at war before, we just kept dancing

And we'll do it again
And we’ll do it again

Songs | Tours | Music videos | Photoshoots | Producers

"Love"
"Lust for Life"
"13 Beaches"
"Cherry"
"White Mustang"
"Summer Bummer"

"Groupie Love"
"In My Feelings"
"Coachella - Woodstock in My Mind"
"God Bless America - and All the Beautiful Women in It"
"When the World Was at War We Kept Dancing"

"Beautiful People Beautiful Problems"
"Tomorrow Never Came"
"Heroin"
"Change"
"Get Free"

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
+{{Infobox song
-{{Infobox_song
 |image = Image:Lust for Life.jpg
 |artist = Lana Del Rey
 |written = [[Lana Del Rey]]<br>[[Rick Nowels]]<br>[[Dean Reid]]
 |producer = Lana Del Rey<br>Rick Nowels<br>[[Kieron Menzies]]<br>Dean Reid
-|recorded =
+|recorded =January 2017
-|time = 4:35
+|time = 4:35<br>{{OfficialVersions}}
+|Source = {{Source|LFL}}
-|Source = [[File:Lfllogo.png|150px|link=Lust for Life (album)]]
 |Singles = {{5S}}
 |DS = {{LFLDS}}
 |next = "[[Beautiful People Beautiful Problems (song)|Beautiful People Beautiful Problems]]"
 |previous = "[[God Bless America - and All the Beautiful Women in It (song)|God Bless America - and All the Beautiful Women in It]]"
-|album = [[Lust for Life (album)|Lust for Life]]}}
+|album = [[Lust for Life (album)|Lust for Life]]
+|released=July 21, 2017}}
-"'''When the World Was at War We Kept Dancing'''" is a song by [[Lana Del Rey|Lana Del Rey.]] It was co-written and produced with [[Rick Nowels]], [[Dean Reid]] and [[Kieron Menzies]]. It is featured as the eleventh track on Del Rey's fifth studio album and fourth major-label studio album, [[Lust for Life (album)|''Lust for Life'']].
+"'''When the World Was at War We Kept Dancing'''" is a song by [[Lana Del Rey]]. It was co-written and produced with [[Rick Nowels]], [[Dean Reid]] and [[Kieron Menzies]]. It is featured as the eleventh track on Del Rey's fifth studio album and fourth major-label studio album, [[Lust for Life (album)|''Lust for Life'']].
-==Background==
+==Background and writing==
-During an interview featured in ''Flaunt'' magazine that was released on May 15, 2017, Del Rey stated that the song has political themes, similarly to "[[God Bless America - and All the Beautiful Women in It (song)|God Bless America - and All the Beautiful Women in It]]". However, she feared that it would not be well received by the public and was unsure whether to include it or not:
+During an interview featured in ''Flaunt'' magazine that was released on May 15, 2017, Del Rey stated that the song had political themes, similarly to "[[God Bless America - and All the Beautiful Women in It (song)|God Bless America - and All the Beautiful Women in It]]". However, she feared that it would not be well received by the public and was unsure whether to include it or not:
-<blockquote>"Well, I have a song that’s quite aware about the collective worry, about whether this is the end of an era. It’s called "When the World Was at War We Kept Dancing." But I actually went back and forth about keeping it on the record, because I didn’t want it there if it would make people feel worse instead of better. It’s not apathetic. The tone of the production is very dark, and doesn’t lead to a fucking happy feeling. And the question it poses: Is this the end of America, of an era? Are we running out of time with this person at the helm of a ship? Will it crash? In my mind, the lyrics were a reminder not to shut down or shut off, or just don’t talk about things. It was more like stay vigilant and keep dancing. Stay awake."</blockquote>In an interview for ''V'' magazine, Del Rey confirmed that the track would be included on the album.
+<blockquote>"Well, I have a song that's quite aware about the collective worry, about whether this is the end of an era. It's called "When the World Was at War We Kept Dancing." But I actually went back and forth about keeping it on the record, because I didn't want it there if it would make people feel worse instead of better. It's not apathetic. The tone of the production is very dark, and doesn't lead to a fucking happy feeling. And the question it poses: Is this the end of America, of an era? Are we running out of time with this person at the helm of a ship? Will it crash? In my mind, the lyrics were a reminder not to shut down or shut off, or just don't talk about things. It was more like stay vigilant and keep dancing. Stay awake."</blockquote>In an interview for ''V'' magazine, Del Rey confirmed that the track would be included on the album.
 ==Live performances==
-Del Rey performed the song live for the first time at her ''[[Lust for Life (album)|Lust for Life]]'' listening party and performance hosted by Spotify at No Vacancy in Los Angeles, California, on [[2017/July#July 20|July 20, 2017]]. In 2018 the song was included as part of the setlist for the [[LA to the Moon Tour]].
+Del Rey performed the song live for the first time at her ''[[Lust for Life (album)|Lust for Life]]'' listening party and performance hosted by Spotify at No Vacancy in Los Angeles, California, on [[2017/July#July 20|July 20, 2017]]. In 2018, the song was included as part of the setlist for the [[LA to the Moon Tour]].
 ==Cross-references==
-*Pearls and curls are individually mentioned in "[[Fucked My Way Up to the Top (song)|Fucked My Way Up to the Top]]" and "[[Marilyn Monroe (song)|Marilyn Monroe]]", while curls are mentioned only in "[[The Other Woman (song)|The Other Woman]]".
+*Pearls and curls are individually mentioned in "[[Fucked My Way Up to the Top (song)|Fucked My Way Up to the Top]]" and "[[Marilyn Monroe (song)|Marilyn Monroe]]"; while curls are mentioned only in "[[The Other Woman (song)|The Other Woman]]".
+*Del Rey remarks "Oh my God" in "[[Heroin (song)|Heroin]]", "[[Summertime Sadness (song)|Summertime Sadness]]", "[[The Blackest Day (song)|The Blackest Day]]" and "[[Paradise (song)|Paradise]]".
+*Dancing is also mentioned in "[[California (song)|California]]", "[[Dance Till We Die (song)|Dance Till We Die]]", "[[Lust for Life (song)|Lust for Life]]", "[[Prom Song (Gone Wrong) (song)|Prom Song (Gone Wrong)]]", "[[Smarty (song)|Smarty]]", "[[If You Lie Down with Me (song)|If You Lie Down With Me]]", and "[[The Grants (song)|The Grants]]", among several others.
+==Official versions==
+* Album version — 4:35
+* Clean version — 4:35
 ==Lyrics==
 {{Scroll box|<poem>
-Girls, don't forget your pearls
+Girls, don’t forget your pearls and all of your horses
-And all of your horses
 As you make your way across the pond
-Girls, don't forget your curls
+Girls, don’t forget your curls and all of your choruses
-And all of your corsets
 Memorize them in a little song
@@ Line 37: / Line 42: @@
 Cut a rug, lean into the fuckin' youth
 Choreo, we just want the fuckin' truth
-(Told by the free and brave)
+(Told by the fake news)
 Is it the end of an era?
@@ Line 44: / Line 49: @@
 Is it the end of America?
-Oh, it's only beginning
+No, it’s only the beginning
 If we hold on to hope
-We'll have our happy ending
+We’ll have a happy ending
-When the world was at war before
+When the world was at war before, we just kept dancing
-We just kept dancing
+When the world was at war before, we just kept dancing
-When the world was at war before
-We just kept dancing
-When the world was at war before
-We just kept dancing
-Boys, don't forget your toys
+Boys, don’t forget your toys and take all of your money
+If you find you’re in a foreign land
-And take all of your money
+Boys, don’t make too much noise and don’t try to be funny
-If you find you're in a foreign land
-Boys, don't make too much noise
-And don't try to be funny
 Other people may not understand
@@ Line 65: / Line 64: @@
 Cut a rug, lean into the fuckin' youth
 Choreo, we just want the fuckin' truth
-(Told by the free and brave)
+(Told by the fake news)
 Is it the end of an era?
@@ Line 72: / Line 71: @@
 Is it the end of America?
-Oh, it's only the beginning
+No, it’s only the beginning
 If we hold on to hope
-We'll have our happy ending
+We’ll have a happy ending
-When the world was at war before
+When the world was at war before, we just kept dancing
-We just kept dancing
+When the world was at war before, we just kept dancing
-When the world was at war before
-We just kept dancing
-We'll do it again
+And we'll do it again
-(Oh my God, dizzy from loving you)
+(Oh, my God, dizzy from lovin' you)
-We'll do it again
+We’ll do it again
-(Oh my God, dizzy from loving you)
+(Oh, my God, dizzy from lovin' you)
-We'll do it again
+We’ll do it again
-(Dizzy from, dizzy from loving you)
+(Dizzy from, dizzy from lovin' you)
-We'll do it again
+We’ll do it again
-(When the world's at war)
+(With the world at war)
 Is it the end of an era?
@@ Line 95: / Line 92: @@
 Is it the end of America?
-When the world was at war before
+When the world was at war before, we just kept dancing
-We just kept dancing
+When the world was at war before, we just kept dancing
-When the world was at war before
-We just kept dancing
-They'll do it again
 And we'll do it again
+And we’ll do it again
 </poem>}}
 {{Navbox album LFL}}
 [[Category:Songs]]
-[[Category:Lust for Life songs]]
 [[Category:Released songs]]
+[[Category:Lust for Life songs]]
 [[Category:LA to the Moon Tour songs]]